Sustainable regional legal practice: the importance of alliances and the use of innovative information technology by legal practices in regional, rural and remote Queensland

Abstract

Recent reports into legal services in regional, rural and remote Queensland indicate that the supply of legal practitioners is insufficient to provide adequate legal services. This paper draws on the results of thirty in-depth interviews with partners (and directors of incorporated legal practices) on the topic of sustainable regional, rural and remote legal practice, with reference to business management practices. This paper focuses on the use of informal alliances between practitioners, and their use of innovative information technology in an effort to deal with the insufficiency of qualified legal staff.